Gonzaga to participate in new revenue sharing model

Originally posted on Gonzaga Bulldogs on SI
By Cole Forsman | Last updated Jul 15, 2025 3:37 PM ET

Gonzaga has officially entered the new era of college athletics.

Gonzaga and the other eight full-time members of the West Coast Conference — Loyola Marymount, Pepperdine, Saint Mary's, Santa Clara, Portland, San Diego, San Francisco and Pacific — have decided to participate in the new revenue sharing model that's been implemented for the 2025-26 academic year, according to the College Sports Commission, the new organization in charge of overseeing NIL deals.

Starting July 1, schools that opted into the new revenue-sharing model spelled out in the landmark House v. NCAA settlement are allowed to share up to $20.5 million per academic year directly with their student-athletes. While a majority of institutions aren't expected to reach that number, those in the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12 and SEC plan on it, with football players likely to receive a majority of the funds.

According to the College Sports Commission — assigned to facilitate and regulate NIL deals in the wake of the House settlement — schools outside the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12 and SEC will have the option to opt in to or out of revenue sharing each year. That's significant for Gonzaga and the other future members of the Pac-12, as the league's standing in the college sports hierarchy has been in limbo for roughly a year now. The College Sports Commission's announcement is the closest the Pac-12 has come to being mentioned as an autonomy conference since the league lost 10 members to the ACC, Big Ten and Big 12, reducing its count to just Washington State and Oregon State for one more season before welcoming seven new schools to the mix in 2026.

Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, Gonzaga, San Diego State, Utah State and Texas State join Oregon State and Washington State to form a new-look Pac-12 conference on July 1, 2026. All nine schools opted into the revenue-sharing plan for this season.

Seattle U, which is set to become a WCC member in 2026, has also opted into the revenue-sharing plan heading into its final season as part of the Western Athletic Conference.

The revenue-sharing cap is expected to increase by around 4% — about $1 million — each year, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures, ending at an estimated $32.9 million in 2034-35.